The International Society for Vaccines is an organization that engages, supports, and sustains the professional goals of a diverse membership in all areas relevant to vaccines - 2018 ISV Annual Congress

Constitution

Constitution

l. THE NAME OF THE SOCIETY The name of the society shall be: INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR VACCINES2. AIMS2.1. To encourage, establish and promote the development and the use of vaccines to prevent and control infectious and non-infectious diseases in humans and animals. 2.2 To develop a professional and academic society devoted to all aspects of vaccines.3. OBJECTIVES3.1 To actively promote study, communication and collaboration, among individuals and organizations who seek to innovate, develop, manufacture and enhance vaccines that decrease or eliminate those diseases that are susceptible to vaccine prophylaxis and treatment. 3.2. To examine and evaluate efficiency, safety and control issues and communicate such evaluations to those involved in the issuing of product licenses for such materials. 3.3. To encourage the development of appropriate vaccine materials and vaccine production processes on the basis of the cost-benefit relationship to the vaccinees. 3.4 To encourage and support research that seeks to determine how vaccines work and to use such knowledge to produce new and more efficient vaccines. 3.5. To hold meetings, conferences, fairs, seminars and lectures that will promote the aims. 3.6. To publish such data and information in research papers, reviews and other media that will promote the aims. 3.6.1 To support efforts needed to establish a web site for all matters relating to vaccines and vaccination. 3.7. To examine and establish codes of practice for the production and the use of vaccines 3.7.1 To establish the means for the professionalization and continuing education of the vaccinologists. 3.8. To honor those who have made exemplary contributions to the field. 3.9. To interact with the public and news media and present messages to the community that are consonant with the range of opinions existing in the leading workers in the field. 3.10. To generate and promote educational materials for the scientists, technicians and engineers that will continue to progress the field. 3.11. To establish standards that can be used to control the allocation of certificates of proficiency in the field. 3.12. To set up an information service to provide verbal and visual materials to those pursuing the aims of the society. 3.13. To promote the establishment of banks of materials that can support vaccine research, development, manufacture and use. 3.14. To promote those commercial activities that are both central and peripheral to those pursuing the aims of the society. 3.15. To set up task groups to tackle particular problems that stand in the way of the achievement of the aims. 3.16. To respond to initiatives from governments or their official agencies that seek to exploit vaccines or that need to be informed what vaccines can achieve in the furtherance of the aims. 3.17. To work with national and international legislatures to recognize the social benefit of research and development in vaccines vis à vis therapy. 3.18. To arrange the organization, administration and finances of the Society so that it can achieve its aims. 3.19. To establish statutes in accordance with the furtherance of the aims of the Society. 3.20. To establish statutes that enable the full participation of those individuals who from time to time may have conflicts of interest. 3.21 To achieve the aims in a manner that is fair, unbiased and not subjected to pressures that are not inherent in the aims.4. OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE BOARD4.1 The Honorary Officers of the Society shall be a President, a Secretary, and a Treasurer, Past President and President-elect. 4.2 There shall be an Executive Board of the Society consisting of the Officers and 6 elected members. The President will Chair the Executive Board Meetings. 4.3 The Executive Board shall prepare the Agenda for meetings of the Society and between meetings shall act as necessary on behalf of the Society; it shall report on any such actions to the next meeting of the Society. 4.4 The officers of the Society and the other 6 members of the Executive Board shall be elected at the General Meeting of the Society. 4.4 1 Nominations for a position on the Executive Board may be made by any member of the Board or by any two ordinary members and shall be sent together with the written consent of the nominee to the Secretary/Treasurer so as to reach that individual no later than two weeks before the General Meeting. Such nominations shall be circulated with the notice of that meeting. Members unable to attend the meeting shall be entitled to vote by post or e-mail. If other nominations are not received for the filling of vacancies the Board's nominees shall be deemed elected. 4.5 The President shall hold office for 2 consecutive years and shall not be eligible for re-election to the same office for a further period of 2 years. 4.6 The President may be removed from office by 25 members of the society signing a petition that there be a vote calling for the removal of the President from office. There will then be a ballot of all the members and in the event that over 66% of those voting uphold the petition, then the President will stand down and an election-will be held to obtain a new President. 4.7 Other Board members shall hold office for 2 years and may be re-elected to the same or different offices in subsequent elections. 4.8 The Executive Board may, for specific purposes, co-opt members to participate in Board Meetings but such co-opted members would not be eligible to vote on resolutions proposed in Board. 4.9 From time to time the Executive Board may establish sub-Boards to pursue specified elements of the Aims and objectives of the Society. The Executive Board shall have the power to appoint and remove individuals from such sub-Boards and to dissolve such sub-Boards when this is deemed necessary. An officer of the Society shall be an ex-officio member of each sub-Board.5. MEMBERSHIP5.1 The Society shall consist of Ordinary, Student and Honorary Members. All such members will be or will have been actively engaged in promoting the Aims and Objectives of the Society. 5.2 The names, qualifications and professional experience of the candidates for Ordinary Membership of the Society must be sent to the Secretary-Treasurer on the form provided for this purpose and the application approved by the Executive Board or a subcommittee of this board that shall include the Secretary and Treasurer. A list of the approved Members will be circulated or read out to the membership at the General Meeting or at an Ordinary Meeting of the Society. 5.3 When a person has been elected a member of the Society, the Secretary-Treasurer shall inform that individual of their election and shall send the new member a copy of the Constitution and any statutory rulings that shall apply to the conduct of members. 5.4 A Student Membership is granted to students actively enrolled in a degree-awarding program in an accredited higher institution. A letter is required from a mentor, department chair or school registry to confirm the student status. The membership fee is waived for a student member.

5.5 The Executive Board shall have the power to terminate a membership if such a termination appears to them to be in the interests of the Society. An explanation of such a termination may be requested at a General Meeting. 5.6 Honorary Members of the Society shall not number more than 10% of the membership. Nominations for Honorary Membership shall be put forward by the Executive Board and shall be circulated to members with the Agenda for the General Meeting. Members who cannot attend the meeting shall be entitled to vote by post. To qualify for Honorary Membership the nominee must be supported by 66 % of the Members who take part in the voting.6. FINANCE6.1 Members shall pay to the Society's account an annual membership due payable in advance due on the 1st January. The amount of the subscription shall be set at the General Meeting and shall remain in force until it is changed at another General Meeting. The Executive Board shall have the power to terminate membership if a member fails to pay the subscription after due notice has been given. Honorary Members do not pay a subscription. 6.2 For membership of the Society to become effective an electronic methods for the transfer of funds will be used for the payment of the subscription that shall be received by the Secretary-Treasurer within three months of the date of election. But the Board shall have the power to relax this requirement in exceptional cases. 6.3 The funds and estates of the Society shall be derived from the annual membership due of Members, donations, grants, funds generated by running events and other endowments accepted by the Executive Board on behalf of the Society. They shall be administered by the Secretary-Treasurer acting on instructions given by the Executive Board of the Society at its General Meeting and shall only be used for the furtherance of the Aims and objectives of the Society. 6.4 The accounts of the Society shall be audited before the General Meeting and a report shall be made by the Secretary-Treasurer to the General Meeting. 6.5 In the event that the Society is dissolved for any reason, the surplus funds remaining after the satisfaction of all debts and liabilities shall not be distributed among the Members but shall be paid or transferred to some other charitable institution or institutions having objects similar to those of the Society and which shall also prohibit the distribution of its or their income among its or their Members. Such institution or institutions shall be determined by the Members of the Society at or before the time of dissolution and if effect cannot be given to this provision, the surplus funds shall be devoted to some charitable object or objects.7. MEETINGS7.1 The General Meeting (and when necessary an Extraordinary General Meeting) shall be held annually at a place and time decided by the Board. The Secretary-Treasurer shall circulate the Agenda to all Members at least one month before the Meeting. 7.2 Scientific meetings and symposia relating to the objects of the Society shall be arranged from time to time by the Board. One such meeting may immediately precede or follow the General Meeting and at each such Meeting the Board shall submit proposal for the dates of such Meetings to be held during the ensuing twelve months. Unauthorized reports, minutes of the proceedings of any Meeting of the Society or its officers shall not be disclosed to the press.8. ALTERATIONS TO THE CONSTITUTION.8.1 Alterations to any provision of this Constitution of the Society shall be made only at a General Meeting of the Society provided that notice of such an alteration has been given on the Agenda of the Meeting and that two-thirds or more of those voting on the alteration signify their assent. Members unable to attend the Meeting shall be encouraged to express themselves in letters which will be read out at the Meeting. Notice of any proposed alteration duly seconded shall be given to the Secretary-Treasurer no later than two weeks before the Meeting.8.2 The Constitution of the Society can not be altered such that the Society will cease to be a charity at law.